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“Magic
allows us to transform the self so as to recognize and respond
to the limitless opportunities to grow, which are always
offered to us.”
- John Muir
What’s in the box this week: (content differences between Family
and Small Shares are underlined and italicized; items with a “+” in
Family Shares are more in quantity than in Small)
Family Share:
Avocados
Arugula
Broccolini +
Carrots or beets
Cucumbers
Green beans +
Lettuce
Mustard greens
Hot peppers (in bag w/tomatoes)
Sweet peppers
Potatoes
Tomatoes
Mystery item (farmer choice)
Small Share:
Arugula
Broccolini
Carrots or beets
Cucumbers
Green beans
Lettuce
Mustard greens
Hot peppers (in bag w/tomatoes)
Potatoes
Tomatoes
Extra Fruit Option:
Berries (1 bskt), bag of pears, bag of apples;
bskt. of cherry tomatoes (Weds. only - Thurs. got them last week)
CALENDAR
Sat. Sept. 30
Seed-saving Workshop
10am - 12:30pm
Please RSVP if you plan to attend: email Amy at aakaplan@gmail.com
Sat. Oct 21
Halloween Pumpkin Pallooza
Nov. 15/16
Last shares of the season!
Nov. 29
First Winter Share delivery
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Happy Beginning of Fall. I believe in magic when I see it! During Saturday's
Equinox celebration, a young girl handed me a bright yellow marigold flower
as we stood on top of the hill, bathed in the rich, late afternoon sunlight,
enjoying the view of the Pajaro Valley, listening to the Banana Slug String
Band playing music, and eating freshly picked peppers. Our traditional farm
walk started by sliding fresh bread dough into the hot belly of our cob-oven, "Toastie." From
there our walk turned into an easy, unstructured flow that spread out across
the farm. The landscape was dotted with harvesters curious to discover what
the fields had to offer. Hand-carried baskets quickly filled with corn, squash,
runner-beans, basil, ground cherries, flowers, blackberries, peppers, strawberries...
even a few Cinderella pumpkins, the first in the pumpkin patch orange enough
for picking. Ivy, our mama goat, was patient enough to endure a many-handed
milking process, kids never stopped pressing apples into fresh cider, and
the Banana Slugs inspired us to dance and sing all along the walk, until
finally we returned to the bread-oven where the warm loaves were ready to
eat. As we gathered in a circle to give thanks for the food so many brought
to share, I was touched by this wonderful expression of community celebrating
this nourishing connection with the land and each other. As the bonfire lit
up and darkness started to settle, I was reminded that in the dark there
is always a seed of light, and in the light always a seed of darkness. When
both balance each other in peace, the seeds of hope will sprout into an abundant
harvest of generosity. - Tom
From our Members
The E. coli-in-spinach outbreak prompted one of our members to
write to us:
“This recent E. coli incident is very sad, but it
is also fodder for sarcasm. I can see it now: Monsanto will soon announce
a special antibiotic that can be sprayed on all crops to kill off E.
coli and all other harmful bacteria. Homeland security will declare
an Orange alert, Monsanto will meet with administration officials, and
the current incarnation of the FDA will quickly modify the "Organic" rules
to require this spray. Oh wait! This substance may adversely impact many
plants, so Live Earth will have to buy Monsanto's genetically engineered
seeds that have engineered resistance to this disinfectant. This spray
also kills off too many beneficial bacteria in the soil, so we’ll
need to buy engineered bacteria from Monsanto as well. Then the world
will be safe again and we can all go back to pouring pesticide and herbicide
into our soil and live happily ever after. Sorry, had to get that off
my chest.
“I grew up on a farm that produced foods (poultry, vegetables
and fruits) using thousand year old techniques. I believe we were already "certified" organic
then, before organic was even a word. We used an almost closed-loop sustainable
system, where human urine and poultry wastes were cured and used judiciously
as amendments. Mulching, composting, and hand picking pests and weeds
were standard daily activities for us. We did not even use DDT when it
burst onto the scene at the time. As far as I can recall, there was not
one incident of E. coli-related death in the history of my
family. We had heart attack and cancer deaths and strokes, but not one
case of anyone in our farm family falling ill and dying suddenly. In
fact, because we all ate more or less the same food, we all would have
been poisoned and likely died as a result. Many of our elders lived and
worked on the farm well into their eighties. A few could have reached
nineties and died peacefully if they had not contracted lung cancer due
to smoking.
“Science and technology have done wonders to improve certain
aspects of agriculture, but they cannot automatically replace farming knowledge
finely honed over thousands of years. So far, the report is that organic
spinach is likely safe. Before the news broke, my family must have consumed
at least five pounds of organic spinach which we’d purchased from
Happy Boy Farm [another organic farm]. The latest batch we ate was from
last Saturday. Some we cooked, the rest we ate as salad. So far, we are
still healthy and functioning.”  |
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Notes
from Debbie’s Kitchen . . . . .
. . . Have a recipe you’d like to share? Contact
Debbie.
Ah,
the Equinox Celebration was great fun. I enjoyed meeting more of you,
and also seeing members I’d met at the farm before. Still haven’t
made it to the farm yet? There’s the Pumpkin Palooza coming up
in October (c’mon out and carve pumpkins with me!) and this Saturday
is Amy’s seed-saving workshop (do remember to RSVP to Amy if you
are coming - see calendar). Meanwhile, how about some recipes? I’ve
received yet more from members on ways to use kale, but since we don’t
have it this week (I know, I can hear a few of you out there cheering,
but I LOVE the stuff!), I’ll have to save them for another
time. - Debbie
Green Bean Hummus
by member Cara Wilson
Cara brought this to the Equinox
Celebration and it was indeed delicious, and a beautiful green color
to boot! Cara concocted it, she said, to try to get through her backlog
of green beans. It was an adaptation of a recipe she’d made last spring when trying to salvage some fava
beans she’d overcooked.
Chop beans into small pieces
and cook for 5 minutes (steam, boil, microwave*; you don’t have to worry about overcooking the beans). Pureé them
in a food processor, adding water and/or olive oil to get desired consistency.
Add salt, cumin and garlic to taste.
The dish is a lovely bright
green color that, unlike guacamole, won’t
turn brown with exposure to air.
*there is some controversy
over the use of a microwave for cooking; certainly the choice is
yours. – Debbie
Speaking of hummus, here is a version made with potatoes!
Potato Hummus
source lost, but I think
it is from “The Potato Cookbook.” As
usual, modified :-)
1 lb. potatoes (~3 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
3 large cloves garlic
¼ C roasted sesame
tahini
¼ C fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp. olive oil
approximately 2/3 C water
½ tsp. ground cumin
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
1 to 1 ½ tsp. salt
Cook potatoes and garlic in
boiling, salted water until tender, approximately 15 minutes. Drain
thoroughly and pass through a ricer or food mill into a bowl. [I don’t have either of these, so would probably use a
potato masher or a hand mixer. Just don’t use a food processor – you’ll
get potato glue! – Debbie] Add tahini, lemon juice and oil and
blend thoroughly. Gradually stir in water until the mixture is the proper
consistency for dipping. Add cumin and cayenne, then season to taste
with salt.
Apple, Potato and Onion Gratin
from Bon Appetit, Feb. 2005
serves 8 [but you could easily
reduce quantities proportionally without harming the outcome I think – Debbie]
12 tbsp. butter, divided
2 lbs. onions, sliced
2 tbsp. (packed) chopped fresh thyme
[or 2 tsp. dried]
4 tsp. salt, divided
2/3 C water
2/3 C dry white wine
4 tsp. sugar
2 ½ lbs. potatoes, cut into ¼” thick
slices
2 lbs. tart apples, peeled,
halved, cored and cut into ¼” thick
slices
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Butter 13x9x2-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Melt 6 tbsp. butter
in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, thyme and 2 tsp. salt;
sauté until onions are translucent, about
10 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high and sauté until onions
are tender and begin to color, about 8 more minutes. Remove from heat
and add remaining 6 tbsp. butter, the water, wine and sugar and stir/swirl
to combine. Bring to a boil, then cool to lukewarm.
Combine potatoes, apples, remaining 2 tsp. salt and onion mixture in
a large bowl; toss gently to blend. Transfer to prepared baking dish,
spreading evenly. Cover dish with parchment paper, then cover with foil.
Bake until potatoes are tender, about 55 minutes. Uncover and bake until
top browns and juices bubble thickly, about 20 minutes longer. Let stand
15 minutes before serving.
Lastly, here’s something I made up this January – liked
it enough that I wrote it down! – Debbie
Broccoli, Beet and Feta Pasta
There are no real measured quantities here. This recipe is not that
picky!
broccoli or broccolini, cut into bite-sized pieces
a few beets, topped, tailed, peeled, sliced, then cut crosswise into
strips
penne pasta
onion, garlic, olive oil
toasted walnuts (optional)
feta cheese
salt and pepper
Cook beet strips in a saucepan
of boiling salted water about 10 minutes or until tender. Boil your
penne pasta according to package directions, adding the cut up broccoli
for the last 2 to 3 minutes of cooking time so it will be done when
the pasta is done. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent or even
longer, if you like them a little caramelized. When the pasta/broccoli
is done, drain well then add to skillet and stir/toss to combine. Add
crumbled feta cheese to mixture and stir/heat until feta melts and makes
it all creamy. Add salt to taste, and I like to add a generous amount
of fresh ground black pepper. Drain and add beets last, stirring just
to mix (so the beets’ color doesn’t overpower it all). Stir
in optional toasted walnuts and serve.
Variation: as I mentioned above,
I made up this recipe in January, when fresh tomatoes were not in the
pantry, but since we have lots of them now, I bet it would be good to
add diced fresh tomato (or halved cherry tomatoes), or substitute tomatoes
for the cooked beets if you don’t like beets.
*Click Here*
for a link to a comprehensive listing of recipes from Live Earth Farm's
newsletters going back as far as our 1998 season! You can search for recipes
by key ingredient. Recipe site is updated weekly during the season.
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